Ugly Betty Season Two, Episode One

Ugly Betty sneaked up on me last year to become my favourite new show of 2006. The first couple of episodes did nothing for me, the characters were too broadly drawn, the cartoonish style grating, the humour too weak. It's premiere collided unfavourably with the hype surrounding The Devil Wears Prada and I initially dismissed it as another well-intentioned, but unfunny satire of the fashion industry. The very fact that I've been eagerly awaiting this season premiere all summer should alert you to two facts; that I'm as fickle as a pickle and that you shouldn't judge a series by it's season opening (unless it's that rare beast, a first episode that's simultaneously enormously entertaining and indictitive of the series to follow, step forward the pilot episodes of Arrested Development and The West Wing). That's why I'm not too worried that the first Ugly Betty episode of the new season wasn't quite up to the usual standard - things can only get better.

As can only be expected, "How Betty Got Her Grieve Back" primarily deals with bringing us up to date on the characters. Betty is trying to forget about Henry by taking on an even greater workload, resulting in her becoming super-stressed and even getting, um, high blood pressure. What is it with this show and stupid medical-related problems? Ignacio's heart condition was boring enough - if I wanted hospital action I'd be watching Grey's Anatomy. We discover that Bradford is Amanda's father which I think is supposed to be a major plot point, but which didn't elicit an "Oh my God!" such as an "Oh...yeah. Duh?" response. Bradford really bores me, I wish the guy would get a facial expression or two.

The Awesome Claire Meade is living with prison break-out buddy Yoga in what looks like a beach house of some description; Daniel is recovering in hospital from the car-crash that has left his sister Alexis in a coma (!), Wilhemina is still scheming to get her hands on Mode Magazine, Marc is...doing not much and Christina is still Scotish. I wonder if they'll develop her "I left a husband back in Scotland" storyline; I kind of hope not, unless they draft someone amazing in to play Mr McKinney. Somebody, say, Scottish and dark and...Timelordesque?

As usual, Mark and Amanda provide the giggles. Even fairly clichéd phrases are laden with extra humour and snark when they drip from this pair's laconic tongues.


Marc: So, this is where you grew up?
Amanda: This is it. The house of lies. [shouting upstairs] Mother! If that is your real name...

We also get a nice, if slightly awkward looking, Mark dressed up as Wilhemina. His Wili-outfit looks suspiciously like his Middle-Ages outfit from Secretary's Day. One tacky wig fits all, I guess.

Alexis wakes up from her coma, feeling thirsty. The twist? She wonders why her brother is calling her Alexis. "It's me, Alex" she croaks. I've never been in a coma, but I would hope that when I awoke I'd be able to tell what sex I was. Maybe that's just wishful thinking...

Finally, the crux of the episode - Santos' departure. The episode tries to lull us into a false sense of security by having Santos "alive" throughout the entire episode but c'mon people, after that season ending how could they leave him alive? It was slightly manipulative to have Hilda be with Santos for the entire episode just to reveal the truth at the end, but I admit I wallowed in it. When Betty opened the door to the darkened room with Hilda hunched alone in her bed...yep, I cried.

But, no fear because happiness is (hopefully) soon at hand - the glorious return of Senor Grubstick to the Big Apple! Yahoo!

Let's hope Charlie's gone for good. I like Jayma Mays who plays her but the character was such an unnerving mix of cloying sweetness and pyschopathism that she was impossible to like (Mays similar but superior character, also named Charlie, on Heroes was cruelly murdered in her first episode - this actress just can't get a break).

One question - what the hell is up with the timeline of this episode? I only watched it once, so maybe somebody mentioned how much time has passed since the last episode, but if they did I missed it and so am a little confused. Daniel is recovering in hospital but is still fairly beat up (and still poppin' those pills, good old Danny) and Alexis is in firmly in a coma which would lead to me believe only a shortish time has passed; Justin's at summer-camp and seeming quite perky despite his obvious cause for being miserable (having your dad bumped off just as you two were getting along, him showing you how to snap your fingers and all, must be a bit of a downer, no?) so I'm inclined to think a decent amount of time has passed. Conflicting thoughts! Agh. This show should not require brain power. Plus, how long did it take Amanda to confront her parents about their true identity?

Overall, it was a decent episode with some laughs, some tears and, yes, a couple of cringe-worthy moments. There was no Wowzer moments, but that can hardly be expected in a expositionary episode.

Best Line:

Claire Meade: "I’ll be dressed as a nun ... or a cat. I haven't decided yet."

(Have I mentioned that Claire Meade is awesome? That punch she administrated to Wili was dead on, much better than the lame one Bree gave to to Orson's ex-wife that I can't remember what she was called in the last season of Desperate Housewives.)

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Yep, TV Guide recently released their list of the top 30 cult tv shows. I guess a show can be defined as "cult" if half the poplulation has never heard of it (who the hell is Mary Hartman and why does she keep repeating herself?) or has that air of oddball mystique around it (Twin Peaks!). Of course, Doctor Who deserves it's place there and the only thing I'm not happy about is Arrested Development's exclusion. Ah, well. Here's the whole list (an asterix denotes a new addition, another version of this list was first published three years ago).

30) Strangers with Candy (1999-2000)*
29) Absolutely Fabulous (1994-2003)
28) Stargate SG-1 (1997-2007)*
27) H.R. Pufnstuf (1969-1971)
26) Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman (1975-1978)
25) Firefly (2002-2003)*
24) Twin Peaks (1990-1991)
23) Dark Shadows (1966-1971)
22) Doctor Who (1963-present)
21) Freaks and Geeks (1999-2000)

20) The Avengers (1966-1969)
19) Quantum Leap (1989-1993)
18) Veronica Mars (2004-2007)*
17) Beauty and the Beast (1987-1990)
16) Babylon 5 (1994-1998)
15) Family Guy (1999-present)
14) Battlestar Galactica (2003-present)*
13) Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1989-1999)
12) Pee-Wee's Playhouse (1986-1991)
11) Jericho (2006-present)*

10) Xena: Warrior Princess (1995-2001)
9) Twilight Zone (1959-1964)
8) The Simpsons (1989-present)
7) The Prisoner (1967-1968)
6) Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969-1974)
5) Lost (2004-present)*
4) Farscape (1999-2003)
3) Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003)
2) The X-Files (1993-2002)
1) Star Trek (1966-1969)

Thoughts? Comments?

Farewell, sweet Doctor.

I had planned to do a sort of Doctor Who Season 3 retrospective sometime last week, but decided to wait until after the finale to order my thoughts. There was every chance that after “The Last of the Time Lords” I would have lost all faith in Russel T. Davies, David Tennant, Freema Agyeman and the whole francise. It would have taken an utter stinker of an episode to make me anti-Who, but it could have happened. I am therefore heartened to report that I can keep the Tennant avatar to the left of this with undimmed pride.

“The Last of the Time Lords” had a lot to accomplish in it’s slim 40 minutes. (EDIT - okay, so it was 51 minutes. Still, that's half the length of a short feature film.) Not only did it have to live up to the heartbreaking Season 2 finale “Doomsday”, but it also had to resolve the multitude of threads left dangling all the way through the series. With the Doctor aged to the point of uselessness, Jack captured, the entire world in the Master’s hands, it was up to Martha Jones, a character who I personally liked but who I knew rubbed a lot of people up the wrong way, to save the day and the gal delivered (getting by with a little help from her friends, obviously!). Below, there be spoilers, btw.

This episode shocked me over and over again. It also made me cry, twice. Which, as anybody who has ever sat through a fim with me wil testify, isn’t exactly the hardest thing to achieve, but two times in 40 minutes is pretty good. Nothing akin to Rose-type bawling, but still, mission accomplished on that front. The Toclafane being the future humans got a huge thumbs up from me, - I had guessed that they were humans as the Master kept dropping them “You love them so much” hint at the Doctor - but tying it all in to the start of Utopia was very satisfying. I had kinda thought they writers had just forgotten them, so I was very pleased by that turn of events. Ann Marie made the point that having those murdering robotic spheres be human sort of undermined the whole “Humans, aren’t they great” schtick the Doctor does, but I disagree. The future people were duped into following the Master; a foolish, life-threatening mistake but a mistake nonetheless. Humans are wonderful and wise and amazing, but we also make mistakes which sometimes cause a lot of people to get hurt. This episode highlighted this fact beautifully and was incredibly life-affirming. Having the entire universe collectively think one word in order to grant the Doctor a sort of life-restoring shield just restored the goodwill and and faith-in-people that has been a continuous thread all the way through the series. By having as the ultimate savior not physical power or science or (thank God) the sonic screwdriver but the power of storytelling, community and hope just made me go all squishy inside. It was teetering on the edge of cheesy, even I’ll admit, but I loved it.

I’m not sure how I feel about Jack as the Face of Boe. The quick shoe-horning of that in at the end seemed a bit throwaway and there has to be some major time-line issues to be resolved there (not the least of which involves Martha mentioning the Face of Boe in front of Jack in Utopia). I’d say the die-hard fans are either wetting themselves with excitement or horror. It was a brave move for Davies though, you have to give the man props. Another did-he-really-just-go-there moment came when the Master apparently died, this is a legendary character that has been around as long as the Doctor himself and killing him off just seems akin to shooting yourself in the foot. BUT there was a tantaslising hint dropped quietly in at the end when we are very briefly shown a hand picking up the Master’s ring as his body burn. The red-painted fingernails indicate it is either his wife or a female regeneration -I’m betting on the former - so this opens up possible avenues for Master-y type plots in the future.

Finally, Martha’s departure. I had kinda predicted this, but I was still on tenderhooks at the very end, especially when she re-enterd the Tardis to deliver her unrequited love speech. I thought it was a good move by the writers, I really liked her character but she didn’t click the same way the Doctor did with Rose. She finally made good on her initial introduction, it was always hinted that she was a match for the Doctor (being one in training herself) and this was finally resolved. She did what it was set out for her to do. The buzz is that Freema will return in the next series, although probably not as the companion. Which only begs the question…who will it be next season? I’m hoping for a male companion, just so we can resolve the sexual tension once and for all. If we could choose from characters we’ve aready met, how about the boy from The Family of Blood or even Sally Sparrow from Blink? Both seem like capable, intelligent, cool people. Who knows, RTD will probably pull something insane out of his hat and give us Ann Robinson or something.

I can totally understand where people are coming from when they say they were disappointed by this episode. There were a lot of dodgy moments, and if I was just that teeny weeny bit more cynical than I am, I can see myself disliking it. As it is though, I was very satisfied by the whole thing. I loved John Simm as the Master dancing around with manic abandon to the Scissor Sisters and although his ageing the Doctor further was a wee bit pointless, it just showed his gleefully sadistic side. Sadly, this also meant the whole episode was a bit Tennant-lite which is never a good thing (unless Moffat is writing, of course). I loved the fact they were confident enough to put the whole thing one year into the future. I loved that David Tennat was able to show off his acting chops again, when he was pleading with the Master to regenerate. It added a sense of depth and history to both men and was really touching. I loved the Lost in Translation-esque whisper, but I do kind of wished what the Doctor said to Martha was left ambiguous, "Use the countdown" doesn't really have the type of mystique that scene required.



I don’t know what I’m going to do until Christmas day, though. That’s months of Tardis-free timey wimey stuff with a big Doctor-shaped void in the middle. Yikes.

It’s getting late and I want to post this before heading up to bed, but I plan to do a whole series review sometime in the future. Maybe. Watch this space, but not too closely.

Mmmm....television...

In general, television gets a bad rep. What with today's brainless reality shows, gormless quizzes with idiots lining up to win toaster ovens and ridiculous soap operas clogging up the schedueles, it's no wonder that watching televsion is seen, in some circles, as being a lowbrow form of entertainment, akin to mud-wrestling or bucket-spittin'. While it's true that the majority of tv is brain-cell killing, addictive trash, there are a couple of programmes that I genuinely love and think are as well-made, enjoyable and informative as any film, book or play.



"Arrested Development" (2003-2006)

Comedy takes many forms. From the the multi-layered (The Simpsons) to the wacky (Monty Python), satire (Father Ted) to sketch ( the awful Little Britain) and everything in between, the art of making-people-laugh on camera has been tried and tested since the dawn of time. Or, at least, the dawn of cinema. In 1895, the Lumiere brothers showed off their comedy short, "Le Jardinier " in which a gardener gets sprayed by his own hose, which presumably was the height of hilarity back in the 19th century. But I digress. My point in all this is to highlight The Greatest Comedy Of My Time. I exclude The Simpsons only because it's peak was in the mid '90s, which I do not consider "My Time".

Arrested Development follows the turbulent life and times of a formerly wealthy family, comprised of the biggest bunch of dysfunctional freaks you'll ever lay eyes on outside of the Big Brother house. However, unlike the washed-up celebrities and whiny attention-seekers that habituate BB, the characters in AD are all loveable in their own, screwed up way. Jason Bateman is the show's centre, as the continously put-upon Michael Bluth, the only sane member in a family full of alcoholics, convicts, magicians and "Never-Nudes". The dialogue is witty and sharp, the action is interspersed with supposed "archival footage" like police records, security camera videos and newspaper clippings, and Ron Howard is the voice of narration, calmly explaining the events on screen. The humor ranges from satire to slapstick, intricate word-play and utter nonsense in glorious, convoluted storylines.

It's hard to pinpoint one standout character. A personal favourites of mine include Dr. Tobias Funkee, a closeted, flamboyant psychaitrist with acting aspirations who is a "never-nude", a serious and rare condition which prevents him from ever being completely naked, even in the shower. "There are literally dozens of us!", Tobias protests, defending his condition to a disbeliever.

Arrested Development was seriously mistreated during it's short time on air. Cancelled time and time again, shoved to erratic time slots much to the annoyance of fans, the series finally grinded to a halt in 2006. The first two seasons are already out in Ireland and are amongst my most watched dvds. It's hard to accurately convey the brilliance of this show, so y'all better watch it yourselves!

"The West Wing" (1999-2006)


Okay, I haven't seen too many episodes of TWW, but I'm working my way through Season One on boxset and Season Two on More 4, plus I've watched assorted episodes here and there over the last few years. Already, I count it among my top three favourite shows, so I feel the right to wax lyrical about it.

American politics has always fascinated me, and with The West Wing I finally came across a show dealt with politics in a truthful, moving and witty way. With the brilliant writer Aaron Sorkin at its helm this political drama set in the White House tackled big subjects with empathy, humor and pathos. Featuring a brilliant ensemble cast (nearly all my favourite programmes have large ensemble casts, they seem to lend themselves to complex, emotional storylines), the West Wing informs and entertains without ever being preachy.

The pilot introduces us to the main characters, Chief of Staff Leo McGarry and his boyish Deputy Josh Lyman, Press Secretary C.J. Cregg, Director of Communications Toby Ziegler and his deputy Sam Seaborn, each with their own individual quirks, traits and foibles. As the episode draws to a close, Martin Sheen makes an appearance in what has to be one of the greatest onscreen entrences, bursting through a door to intone "I am the Lord your God. Thou shalt worship no other god before me."

Jed Bartlett is probably the best president America never had. His skewed humour, intelligence and genuine concern for his country will never fill the position of Commander-in-Chief in real life, but in the show Jed Bartlett does his job beautifully, aided by his dedicated team of workers. Critics may angrily point out its "Liberal Agenda", but the leftwing bias is not as rampant as it might seem. Anyway, as most of The West Wing aired during Dubya's reign, it's understandable that the writers yearned for something the polar opposite to the way their country was, and is, going.

W.G. Snuffy Walden's rousing theme tune, coupled with the intense faces of the cast in the opening credits accomplish the considerable feat of making me feel hopelessly patriotic towards a country I've never been to. God Bless America!

I could also write about other television shows, but for the time being my fingers and brain are becoming jaded, so I'll stop. Only to say, this post was inspired by another programme which I've only recently started watching (eh, last night...). I'm talking about the weird, the wonderful Twin Peaks, the first series of which I've just rented. After the first five episodes, I'm hooked. Whatever David Lynch is taking, I want some!

"That's a damn fine cup of coffee..."